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Synonyms

pan out

British  

verb

  1. informal  (intr, adverb) to work out; turn out; result

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

pan out Idioms  
  1. Turn out well, succeed, as in If I don't pan out as a musician, I can always go back to school. This expression alludes to washing gold from gravel in a pan. [Mid-1800s]


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Under the same 50% payout scenario, the dividend could rise to $30 a share in the coming years if management’s outlook for free cash flow pans out.

From Barron's

But still as a top-10 selection, the track record of the eighth pick panning out is … less than stellar.

From Washington Times

“As it panned out, the gap is the ideal amount of time; if he had been any younger, I don’t think I could have told the story I wanted to tell.”

From Los Angeles Times

In “Screaming on the Inside,” the parenting columnist details her own rocky journey as a mother and pans out to a system that’s been failing all of us.

From Los Angeles Times

The question is whether the science will pan out.

From New York Times